Jesus went down to Capernaum, a town of Galilee. He taught them on the Sabbath, and they were astonished at his teaching because he spoke with authority. In the synagogue there was a man with the spirit of an unclean demon, and he cried out in a loud voice, “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are–the Holy One of God!” Jesus rebuked him and said, “Be quiet! Come out of him!” Then the demon threw the man down in front of them and came out of him without doing him any harm. They were all amazed and said to one another, “What is there about his word? For with authority and power he commands the unclean spirits, and they come out.” And news of him spread everywhere in the surrounding region.
Today we see how teaching was at the very heart of Jesus’ public mission. But His preaching was very different from that of other teachers, and this is what left the people astonished and amazed. Indeed, even though the Lord had never formally studied (cf. Jn 7:15), His teaching unsettled and challenged His listeners, because “He spoke with authority” (Lk 4:32). His words carried the weight of one who knew Himself to be the “Holy One of God.”
It was precisely this authority that gave power to His teaching. Jesus did not rely on complicated arguments or abstract definitions. Instead, He spoke with vivid, concrete images—drawn from nature itself or directly from Sacred Scripture. He was an excellent observer, a man deeply close to human life and situations: while we see Him teaching, we also see Him healing the sick, casting out demons, and bringing good to the people around Him. In the book of everyday life, He read those experiences that, later on, He would use in His teachings. And although His material was often simple and familiar, His words were always profound, unsettling, radically new, and definitive.
The greatest thing about Jesus’ way of speaking was the union of divine authority with an incredible human simplicity. Authority and simplicity came together in Him because of His perfect knowledge of the Father and His loving obedience to Him (cf. Mt 11:25-27). This intimate relationship with the Father explains the unique harmony of greatness and humility in Christ. His authority did not fit human categories; it did not come from competition, personal interest, or a desire to impress. It was an authority revealed both in the sublimity of His words and deeds, and in His humility and simplicity. On His lips there was no self-praise, no arrogance, no shouting. Instead, gentleness, compassion, peace, serenity, mercy, truth, light, and justice—all these were the fragrance surrounding the authority of His teachings.